Revenge of a Hiccup
by DragonRider96
Summary: Henry Haddock asks out his best friend Astrid Hofferson at the end of their eighth grade year. But she brutally rejects him and proceeds to give him the nickname "Hiccup". Sad and angry Henry drops out before his freshman year and proceeds to buff up. He returns at the start of his sophomore year unrecognizable to get revenge on the girl that brutally rejected him. Discontinued.
1. Chapter 1

_What's happenin' y'all? Here with another story! I got this idea from the anime "Masamune-kun no Revenge" I recommend it to any anime fan out there who hasn't seen it yet. And if you don't watch anime, then you're missing out on A LOT! Anyway the plot of this story isn't going to be exactly the same as the anime. At least I'll try not to make them the same. If I do, just let me know._

 _How to Train Your Dragon is owned by Cressida Crowell, Dean DeBloise, Chris Sanders, and DreamWorks._

 _Enjoy!_

Prologue: The Day I Became a Hiccup

Henry ran down the hallway as fast as he could. His backpack bounced back and forth behind him slamming his body with every other step he took. People stared as he passed, but he could care less. He was on top of the world right now. He was finally going to go out with the girl of his dreams.

It was the official last day of his eighth grade year. And the first day everything in his life was going to get better. See, he had finally gathered the courage to ask out Astrid Hofferson. Astrid was considered the prettiest and most desirable girl in his year. Every guy chased after her, and every guy that managed to get close was immediately rejected. She didn't take any suitors, or at least she didn't until today.

The day had started just like any other normal day for him. He woke up, showered, brushed his teeth, and then spent the remaining 30 minutes nibbling on toast waiting for the bus. He pulled out his wallet and found the photo of him and Astrid. He was attempting to shove her away while she was kissing him on the cheek. The photo had been taken during their fourth grade year during recess. They had been best friends since kindergarten, and of course it was in kindergarten when the challenge of "who could date Astrid Hofferson" began.

It was during one of these rejections that the boy that didn't get his way lashed out. After Astrid rejected him the boy got angry and pusher her causing her to stumble before she fell which caused her to skin her knee. Astrid began to cry, heavy tears sliding down her face. Henry had noticed this and ran over to shove the boy back.

Now something you ought to know about Henry is... he's not exactly on the large side. Even during kindergarten he was much smaller than the other boys his age, but his courage could surpass even that of the bravest adult. But it was this courage that got him into a lot of fights… fights that normally resulted in a loss. So it was no surprise that after Henry shoved the other boy, the boy and he got into a scuffle resulting in Henry getting a bloody nose, and the boy walking away laughing.

Astrid had watched the whole thing and when the little boy was out of ear shot proceeded to scold Henry for getting in the way and getting hurt. But Henry just stared at her in awe, he had never seen Astrid up close. Being on the small side he never attracted much attention and thus never attempted to gain friends. He could see why the other boys went for her, she was beautiful. Especially her eyes. They were blue, bluer than the sky, and much bluer than the ocean. He felt her could drown in them. Once Astrid finished her scolding she pulled him into a hug which he was more than happy to return. This started a friendship which had continued to this day.

Henry had zoned out and hadn't noticed his bus roll up. He jumped as the driver honked getting his attention. He smiled and waved before shoving his wallet back into his pocket. He entered the bus and began moving toward the back where he and Astrid usually sat. He found her as she waved him over excitedly. She moved her backpack aside giving him room to sit down next to her.

"Can you believe it?" She squealed. "Our last day of middle school!" She threw her arms around him in a hug.

"I know!" He was just as excited as she was. They had been planning this day since their first day of sixth grade. At every school milestone they threw a little party for just the two of them. They did it at the end of kindergarten, the end of fifth grade, and tonight they would throw another one. Henry looked at her but lost his train of thought. She was wearing that blue shirt he bought her. She had also tied her hair back in a ponytail allowing both of her beautiful blue eyes to be shown, the shirt causing them to shine brighter (Which was the reason he had bought the shirt in the first place). He breathed through his nose. She was also wearing perfume, which was odd because she only wore perfume on special occasions, like school plays, or when they went on field trips. He was so out of it that he didn't hear her ask her question.

"Henry?" She shook him. "Earth to Henry?"

"Hmm?" He shook his head, his train of thought returning to the present. "What?"

She chuckled. "I asked you a question."

"Sorry… Guess I wasn't paying attention." The bus hit a speed bump causing his backpack to fall on the floor. He reached down to pick it up. "What was your question?" He asked.

She sighed. "I'll ask again later. When that head of yours is screwed on straight." The rest of the ride went by as normal. They mainly talked about their summer plans, and the summer plans of other people. Who was going where, and who would accompany them.

The conversation eventually turned to gossip. "Any suitors?" Henry asked stretching his feet out into the aisle.

"None this week." Astrid answered. She was breathing onto the window and smiley faces with her finger. "Which is odd."

Henry stopped stretching and looked at her. No suitors this week? This was unprecedented. Normally she had at least one, but today was Friday, the end of the academic week for middle school students. Did that mean that it was almost over? With high school around the corner everyone had a girlfriend or boyfriend at this point so there was no reason to target Astrid anymore. And if there was no one going after her, then that meant… "Hey Astrid?"

She stopped doodling on the window and turned to look at him. "Hmm?"

Henry swallowed. This would be the first time he ever asked a girl out. What was he supposed to say? 'You wanna go out?' just sounded too simple. Maybe some girls found charm in simplicity. But what if Astrid didn't. "Henry?" She placed her hand on his shoulder which didn't help his situation. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Me?" He asked. His face felt hot, and was no doubt red with embarrassment. He began to rub his hands together. "I'm fine. Just fine."

"Are you sure? We cou-"

"Astrid will you got out with me?"

He immediately regretted asking. She just stared at him. She didn't say anything. He looked down at his backpack. He shouldn't have asked. He might have just ruined their friendship with one stupid question. Of course she was going to say no. It's not like he would make good boyfriend material. He was only 5'2, which was actually over half a foot shorter than the majority of males in his class. Granted Astrid was 5'1, but at least she had the muscle structure to back it up. He was just skin and bones.

He began to sweat as more blood rushed to his face. He rubbed his palms on his thighs, trying to wipe the sweat off them. When the awkwardness reached fever pitch the bus stopped. Henry looked up and saw they had arrived at school. Henry began to stand up. He wanted off this bus as soon as possible. He would make the effort to apologize to her later, and then they would most likely shut the friendship off, and never speak to each other again.

As he began to walk away Astrid reached out and grabbed his wrist. He looked down at her, startled that she had finally begun moving again. "Meet me by the oak tree in the school court yard after school." She said nothing more before getting up herself and walking off the bus leaving him there. Once again he was so zoned out that the bus driver had to snap him out of it agin. With a finger snap in his face this time.

The day couldn't end fast enough for him. Nothing was being taught, in fact all they did in each one of his classes was watch movies. Due to it being the last day of school he along with the rest of the students got early release. So it was only a four hour day instead of a seven hour one. After his last class Henry ran down the hallway as fast as he could. His backpack bounced back and forth behind him slamming into his body with every other step he took.

The school courtyard was in the center of school. The school itself formed a square around it. Hiccup pushed the door open, but she wasn't there. He ran to the oak tree at the center of the courtyard and sat down on the bench beneath it. He waited. He waited. And he waited some more. She never showed up. He looked at his watch. It had been over half an hour since final bell, so all the buses were gone. He would have to call his dad for a ride.

He sighed. "Figures." The sky had darkened and thunder rumbled. He looked up just in time for a water droplet to hit him in the face. This drop was followed by more, and soon a steady down pour commenced. The oak tree provided some decent cover from the rain so he made no attempt to move. He sighed again. "Guess I'll call her and apologize for making an ass of myself." He pulled out his cellphone and began to dial, but caught a speck of blonde out of the corner of his eye. He looked up and saw her through one of the windows coming towards the entrance to the courtyard. He immediately stood up and ran towards her.

He reached the door and stopped her before she could step outside in the rain. He held the door open, breathing hard. "Astrid look." He began. "Let me jus-"

"No let me go first."

Henry stopped. Why did she sound angry? Was it because he asked her out? Was it because he became one of the many suitors that she constantly tried to avoid? With her next sentence he got his answer.

"Listen carefully because I'm only going to say this once. Nod if you understand." He nodded slowly, shocked that she would use such a condescending tone with him. "I will never go out with you. I don't want to see or talk to you again. Neither I, nor anyone else would ever want to be caught socializing with someone like you."

Henry was shocked as her words poured from her mouth. She had never spoken to him like that. Other people had, but she was quick to defend him, stating that looks weren't everything. So where was this coming from?

"Astrid I-" but she held up a hand to silence him, determined to finish.

"You're nothing but a small weak little hiccup. And hiccups don't deserve friends. This," she pointed at herself and him, "is over. Our friendship never happened, and I will deny its existence if you ask. Do you understand?"

He just stared at her shocked. Did his question really offend her that much? Most people that asked her got a simple no. They weren't name called and ridiculed.

"Do you understand?" She repeated.

Henry felt a sharp pang in his chest. Followed by something snapping. Something inside him broke, and his face morphed from one of shocked, to one of anger. He clenched his fists, tears began to well up in his eyes, but he didn't dare cry.

"Answer the question hiccup." She sounded annoyed. "Do you understand?" Henry didn't say anything, he simply nodded. But that didn't seem to be enough. "Say 'I understand Astrid."

He clenched his teeth. There was no stopping the tears now as his once best friend spoke to and belittled him like a child. "I understand Astrid." Thunder rumbled shaking the walls of the school. Satisfied with his answer she nodded before turning and walking away leaving him there in the pouring rain.

"You're a hiccup Henry! That's all you are! And that's all you'll ever be!"


	2. Chapter 2

_Wow this story really took off! Thanks so much for all the favs, follows and of course, the reviews. Now to the one that HATES MODERN AUs. Let me just say FUCK YOU TOO! JK, but seriously in the canon universe of HTTYD when do they ever say the words middle school, or high school? Honestly it should have been pretty self-explanatory that this was a modern AU. I actually haven't stopped laughing since you reviewed this story… In the future please refrain from lashing out at me for stuff you don't seem to enjoy, because I'm not forcing you to read it._

 _Now for those of you that DID enjoy the prologue, I'm back with the official first chapter! Enjoy!_

Chapter 1: One Year Later

 _WHAM! SLAP! SLAM! PUNCH!_ "You're nothing but a hiccup!" _WHACK! SLAP! BOOM! PUNCH!_ "A small weak little hiccup!" _SLAM! BOOM! BAM! SLAP!_ "Our friendship never happened." _WHAM! SLAP! PUNCH! BOOM!_ "Neither I, nor anyone else would ever want to be caught socializing with someone like you." _WHACK! SLAM! BAM! BOOM! "_ I will never go out with you." _WHACK! PUNCH! SLAP! KICK!_ "You're nothing but a hiccup." _WHACK! WHAM! BOOM! SLAM!_ "That's all you'll ever be." _BOOOOOOM!_ The abused punching bag had finally had enough as the chain it was hanging from broke and it flew into the wall.

He stood there breathing hard, sweat rolling down his muscular neck, onto his broad shoulders, before making it to his chiseled abs. He sighed heavily, the memory still fresh in his mind. It had been one year since that day. The day he would never forget, the day his life changed forever, the day he vowed revenge.

He cut all contact with the outside world. His father, the principle of Berk High school, Stoick Haddock had given him a weird look when he asked to be homeschooled, but after hours of begging and reasoning Stoick agreed. Henry dropped out of public school and never spoke to anyone but his father, sister, uncle, or tutor.

He not only began homeschooling, he started working out. His dad had a workout room in the basement, which he used almost every chance he got when he wasn't being tutored. It had taken him months to get to where he was now. What was once skin and bone was now rock hard muscle. What was once a 5'2 bag of bones was now a 6'1 tower of abs.

He walked over to the work out bench where he kept his bag. He reached into the bag and pulled out a towel, which he wrapped around his neck to soak up the sweat. He pulled out a bottle of water and proceeded to gulp the entire thing. As he was leaving the room he stopped in front of the body mirror by the door. He looked at himself, impressed with his progress.

He struck a pose, flexing his biceps, watching the veins pop out of his skin. He struck another pose, flexing his abs. Damn he looked good. He eyed his hair. It was no longer the shade of red like it was on the day he got rejected, no now it was more of a brown. He struck another pose. He just couldn't keep his eyes off the mirror. He was so distracted by his reflection that he failed to hear the heavy footsteps coming down the stairs.

"Look out! We got ourselves a narcissist over here!"

Henry looked at the source of the voice and found his sister standing at the bottom of the stairs. "Very funny Emma. But even you have to admit," he turned to face her and flexed, "I look amazing like this." Emma was a year older than him. She was his unofficial 'spy'. She kept an eye on Astrid throughout her freshman year, keeping Henry up to date on what she was doing, who she was hanging out with, etc. Apparently after rejecting him she went on to another group of friends and immediately forgot about him… Just like she said she would.

Emma rolled her eyes before moving over to the bench and lounging on it. "You know that no girl is ever gonna fall for a guy that's full of himself. Especially Astrid."

He gave her a confident look before smiling, showing off perfect pearly white teeth. "That's where you're wrong. Remember my motto?"

Emma stroked her chin deep in thought. "Never leave the seat up?"

Henry went from confident to shocked. "N-N-Not that one!"

Emma stroked her chin harder. "Save some for me?"

Henry sighed annoyed. "No." Emma continued to stroke her chin. Henry knew she knew what he was talking about, she was just playing the annoying sister role.

He sighed. "Everything depends on whether you're hot or not."

Emma's hand flew into the air. "Oh! That one!"

Henry sighed again before going back to posing in front of the mirror. Suddenly he heard what sounded like the rustling of a bag. He looked over at her to find her opening a bag of bar-b que potato chips. She pulled a chip out and crunched on it before noticing him staring. "How can you eat junk food this early in the morning?" he asked.

She pulled out another chip. "Want one?" She offered it to him.

Henry crossed his arms in an x across his chest and backed away. "Never!"

She shrugged. "Suit yourself." She continued crunching on chips while he posed in front of the mirror. "Why do you keep doing that?"

"I'm setting an example for myself." He posed again. "Anyway, what's the situation with Astrid? What classes will she be taking?"

Emma had finished her bag of chips and pulled out another one. "Besides core classes she'll be taking swim as her P.E credit, and she joined the orchestra as well."

Henry stopped staring at the mirror and turned to look at her. "Did you make sure that dad took care of the preparations?"

She nodded. "He seemed confused when I asked him to give you and her the same classes, but once I reminded him what she did to you, he was more than happy to agree. The only classes you don't have with her are orchestra, history, and geometry. He had to make it look convincing, so he made sure to leave a few classes out."

Henry nodded. "Good." He turned to flex again. This year he was returning to the public eye. He had gotten all of his freshman credits through homeschooling and was now going to start his sophomore year back in the public school system. With his dad being the principle and uncle the superintendent it wasn't difficult for his records to be found and updated.

"Emma! Henry!" A deep voice called from upstairs. "Breakfast is ready!"

Emma was quick to run back up the stairs, but Henry wanted to stay and enjoy his reflection a little longer. But his sister had other plans as she ran back down and brutally dragged him away from the mirror and up the stairs. Even after a whole year of working out, he was still weaker than his older sibling. Typical.

She drug him into the kitchen and sat him down. "Here we are!" She said cheerfully, a huge smile on her face.

"Don't drag me around like that!" Henry shouted.

Emma didn't respond, she simply sat down across from him and began to dig into her breakfast. "Henry?" Stoick asked from the counter. He was pouring himself a bowl of cereal. "Can you go put a shirt on?"

"Huh?" Henry looked down at himself. "Oh! Of course!" He ran up the stairs at lightning speed before running back down just as fast with a plain white t-shirt covering his torso.

"Thank you." Stoick said around his spoon. He sat down as well before grabbing a pastry.

"What is this?" Henry asked. "Pastries? Pancakes? Lucky Charms? Dad all of these are high in Trans fats!"

Stoick was drinking the milk from his bowl. When he finished he looked at his son quizzically. "It's been a year son. Don't you think it's time to start coming off this lifestyle you're living, and return to something a little more normal?"

Emma was finishing up on her second stack of pancakes. She had such fast metabolism she could eat what she wanted and not have to worry about weight gain. "I agree. You need to lighten up Henry. What are you going to do once you get your revenge? Are you going to continue getting stronger?"

Henry involuntarily looked inside his shirt at his abs. Emma threw a pastry at him. It hit him in the head before falling into his shirt. Henry gave her an irritated look which she returned with an innocent smile. "Maybe I will." He answered. He pulled the pastry out of his shirt before throwing it back at her. "Maybe I'll go for another girl that appreciates me, instead of leading me on for eight years before slapping me in the face and leaving me in the rain."

Emma easily caught the pastry and sighed. "I'm sorry for what happened, but I'm just thinking about your future." She looked at her dad who returned her gaze. "We both are."

"Your sister is right son." Henry groaned. "Since you're returning to the public this year I want you to focus more on what's going on around you. Don't forget that there's more to life than Astrid Hofferson."

"Thanks dad." He muttered. He stood up abruptly causing the table and the contents upon it to shake.

"Where are you going?" Emma asked as she nibbled on the pastry that was thrown at her.

"To take a shower. I have to look presentable if Astrid is going to notice me." Emma and Stoick sighed as the delusional Henry walked up the stairs leaving his breakfast untouched.

An hour later he was clean, serene and ready to put his plan of revenge into action. He went through his closet. He had to find something that really got people's attention. Something that would get him noticed. Of course he was essentially going to be the new kid, so everyone was going to notice him anyway. Eventually he decided to go with a simple green t-shirt and blue jeans. The shirt hugged his stomach showing off the body he had worked so hard to get. He left his hair a mess, allowing his eyes to remain covered. He didn't want Astrid to recognize him.

"Henry!" Emma called from downstairs. "Are you posing in the bathroom now?"

"Maybe!" He called back as he put his shoes on.

"Well hurry up before I leave you behind!"

He knew she was serious. One time when they were both in elementary school they were at a Wal-Mart and he was admiring something in the toy aisle. She told him to hurry up and pick or she would leave him behind. He didn't listen and proceeded to inspect the toys for another ten minutes. When he looked up she nor their father were nowhere to be found. It took an employee to hunt down his family while he cried in their lounge. Luckily Emma had gotten in trouble for the incident and their father grounded her.

Not wanting to test her he tied his laces up before running down the stairs as fast as he could. But unfortunately he didn't make it very far as one of the laces came loose. "Ahhhh!" He fell down the remaining stairs his body landing on the floor with a loud thud. "Ow." He groaned.

Stoick came running in from his office opposite the dining room. "What was that?"

Emma couldn't stop laughing. She bent over, squeezing her sides. "Ha ha ha ha ha!" She dropped her backpack to the floor before falling over. She laughed harder, her body shaking uncontrollably as she rolled around crying.

"Don't ruin my stairs." Stoick ordered.

"You got it dad." Henry groaned from the floor.

Emma laughed harder. "Yeah Henry! Don't ruin the stairs!" Henry gave her an irritated look, but said nothing.

Through her laughing fit Emma had managed to open her eyes long enough to look at her watch. Through her tears she got a look at the time, and her laughing immediately shut off. "Oh my look at the time." She abruptly stood up and grabbed her backpack. "Come on Henry."

Henry was sitting on the stairs retying his shoes when he was suddenly drug out the door by his sister. "Hey! At least let me tie my shoes!" But she didn't listen as she dragged him into the garage and practically shoved him into the passenger seat of her blue SUV.

Technically the SUV belonged to their mother, but she died in a plane crash two years ago, and Stoick never got rid of the car. He finished paying it off, and gave it to Emma on her 17th birthday. It was a very emotional moment for all of them.

She hopped into the driver seat before starting the car and booking it out of the garage and onto the road. "Slow down!" Henry shouted as he attempted to finish tying his shoes, but her chaotic driving was making it difficult.

"Can't!" She shouted. "We only have 30 minutes until first bell!" Hiccup muttered under his breath as he finally got both his shoes tied. He sat up and exhaled loudly.

"So what's your plan?" She asked. She was finally driving the speed limit and was no longer all over the road dodging traffic.

"For what?" he asked.

"How are you going to kick start this plan of yours? She hasn't seen you in a year. She hasn't asked about you, she might not even remember you. She's hanging out with a whole different kind of crowd now. One that's difficult to get into."

"Let me worry about that. I've got it all figured out."

"You don't have a plan do you."

"Of course I do!" He shouted. "It's the greatest revenge plan in the history of revenge plans!" She turned into the school parking lot and drove over to her assigned parking space. Luckily it was near the school itself so they didn't have to walk very far.

She turned the car off. They both got out and proceeded to walk toward the building. "And what is this revenge plan of yours?" She asked as they reached the entrance.

He opened the door for her and gave her an evil smile. "You'll just have to watch and find out."

She shrugged. "Whatever. Meet me here after school or I'm leaving you behind."

"Yes ma'am." He muttered as he walked in behind her. He slowed down as she walked ahead, meeting up with some of her friends in the hallway. Henry looked around wide eyed. This was going to be his first high school experience, and it was also going to be the beginning of his improved life. The day he finally began his two phase revenge plan against Astrid Hofferson.

Phase One? Get Astrid to fall head over heels in love with him.

 _I know it's not much, but I really wanted to get this out. Chapter 2 will most likely follow just as quickly. I have this story mostly planned out and will attempt to update weekly, and of course continuously edit each chapter to keep the typos on the down chapter sizes will vary from small to large, so if a small chapter comes out, plz don't be alarmed as the next chapter will most likely be larger. Next couple of chapters will most likely be as long as this one. Again thanks for all the favs and follows! Till next time!_

 _Hiccstrid-OnlyI hate modern au- your review has been answered at the top of the chapter, but let me reiterate. It should have been pretty self-explanatory from the summary that this was a modern au. Please refrain from reviewing if all you're going to tell me is FUCK YOU… So with that said… FUCK YOU TOO… Have a nice day._

 _Critic-chris- Glad you enjoyed the chapter. Yes I hope this concept gets more interesting as I continue updating!_

 _Theblackbird123- Glad you enjoyed it!_

 _Karate Koala- I PM'ed you my response… Hope you stick around to the end!_

 _EagleDragon15- Glad you enjoyed it!_

 _Huntergo123- Not to worry. Snotlout, Fishlegs, The Twins, Heather and many Characters of my own creations will join the party soon. Hope you stick around to the end of the story._


	3. Chapter 3

_Wow… Not even two chapters in and already Hiccup is getting hated on. That. Is. Exactly what I was going for! Trust me on this when I say that the story will get better! Not to mention some other… stuff that is going to happen soon that y'all will get a kick out of…_

 _I keep forgetting to put OCC warnings on these things… I guess I should start doing that… Eventually… Anyway I understand the concern for this Hiccup. His arrogance is equal to, if not higher than Snotlout, but trust me when I say things will get better starting with this chapter._

 _Enjoy!_

Chapter 2: The First Day of School

Henry was in awe at the sight of Berk High School. The school was huge. It was all one big two story building. Inside the building had one long hallway that stretched from one end to the other. Split perpendicularly along this main hallway were many little hallways that had classrooms lined up on either side of them. At the halfway point the main hallway split perpendicularly into two slightly smaller hallways. One going towards the front of the school, and the other going towards the back.

Henry breathed deeply trying to calm his nerves. He had been planning this for months. What could possibly go wrong? He knew he was no longer the 'hiccup' that Astrid thought he was. He was strong, and tall, and every girl's dream come true, but now that he was here, he realized that there was still something missing. He just couldn't figure out what it was.

The main hallway wasn't very crowded. That was most likely because there was only five minutes until first bell and almost everyone was already in class. Wait FIVE MINUTES! He ran as fast as he could down the hallway. He felt a sense of déjà vu as he ran. This was how the last day of public school ended for him, and now it was how it started.

"200c, 200c." He muttered to himself as he ran. He was looking for the 200 hall. "Excuse me?" He called to a duo of girls that were exiting the library. "Can you tell me where 200c is?" The girls gave him a confused look. Their cheeks turned red as he moved closer. "Please tell me where 200c is!"

"I-It's that way." The one on the right pointed further down the hallway. "Just go down three more hallways, the 200 hall is on the left."

"Thanks!" He shouted before running away leaving the girls in a cloud of dust. "On the left, on the left, on the left." He followed the girls' instructions and found the classroom. Just in time too. He pushed the classroom door open and collapsed inside right as the bell rang. "I made it." He smiled from the floor.

Someone cleared their throat above him. He looked up to see a thin brunette man standing above him. The man was wearing slacks and a brown polo shirt. "Are you finished making a scene in my classroom?"

Henry immediately stood up. "Sorry! I lost track of time, and my way around the school!"

The teacher eyed him up and down. "Ah yes, your that new student that's starting today aren't you?" Henry nodded. "Please take a seat then."

Henry looked around the room. Everyone was staring at him. What was his first period anyway? He pulled out his schedule. The first class of the day was English II, which meant that _'she'_ was here. He stared back at the students. He eyed each one, in each row. They gave him mixed looks. Some looked annoyed, others looked indifferent, and some of the girls looked at him with red cheeks and dazzling eyes. There was only one student that wasn't looking at him. She had her back to him. All he could see of her was her blonde ponytail. She was sitting in the front, and the only available seat was in the back, away from her.

Hiccup moved to sit at that seat. "Now then." The teacher started. "My name is Mr. Heddly. I'll be your English teacher. Now to start this year off I thought that it would be fun to first introduce ourselves. I want each of you to stand up and tell me your name, and your plans for this year. We'll start with this row." Mr. Heddly pointed to the desk closest to him. "And we'll go like this." He then pointed to the desk next to the first one. "Understood?" Everyone nodded.

The first student stood up. He was a large blonde boy, had to be overweight, and he talked with a severe stutter. "M-My name is Franklin I-I-Ingerman, and this year I… I want to make friends and better myself."

Some of the students chuckled, but a dirty look from Mr. Heddly shut them off. "Thank you Franklin. Next." That's how it went, each student telling their name and plans for the year. Henry tuned it out waiting for his turn to stand up, but immediately tuned back in when it was _'her turn'._

"My name is Astrid Hofferson." She didn't say more.

"And?" Mr Heddly asked. "What are your plans for this year?"

Astrid breathed deeply. "To right the wrongs of my past." She immediately sat down and laid her head down.

Mr Heddly cleared his throat. "Next."

The rest of the activity went by relatively quickly. Almost everyone had the standard cliché goals. Pass their classes. Fix their GPA. Etc. Soon it was Henry's turn. He stood up. "My name is Henry." He was told to explain what his plans for this year were. Was he supposed to tell the class that he planned on getting revenge on Astrid Hofferson? That most likely wasn't such a good idea because the girl was sitting just a few seats away from him. She hadn't looked up once since she took her turn.

"And what are your plans for this year Henry?"

Henry sighed. He might as well tell the truth. Or at least some of the truth. "This year I plan to get revenge on someone that wronged me in the past." He sat back down and said nothing more.

The rest of the class went by uneventfully. The teacher handed out forms for parents to sign, and gave out the syllabus. He explained how the grading system worked, and on what days tests and quizzes were on. Before everyone knew it the bell rang. Astrid was the first to leave. She left the room in a flash of blond.

Henry sighed. "I guess this was to be expected."

His next class was history, so Astrid wasn't going to be there. He found his classroom without help this time and immediately sat at the back of the room again. Astrid wasn't here so he had no reason to draw attention to himself. He seemed to do it anyway as several girls were drawn to him and immediately started asking him questions.

"Where are you from?"

"What's your name?"

"Can I touch your muscles?"

Henry would be lying if he didn't admit he enjoyed the attention, but he didn't have time for other girls right now. His one and only girl at the moment was Astrid. "Sorry ladies." He spoke with as cool a voice as he could. "But I currently have a girlfriend." They bought it.

"Aw."

"She doesn't have to know."

"I can be better than her."

Or at least most of them bought it. "What's her name?"

Henry's eyes widened. "Beg ya pardon?" he asked.

The girl that asked the question leaned forward, making sure her cleavage was shown allowing him to look down her shirt if he wished. "What. Is. Her. Name?" She asked.

"Uh." Henry immediately started running female names through his head. Obviously he couldn't say Astrid. He would alert her to his presence, and that would cause a dent in his revenge plan. Let's see… Rachel? Sally? Alison? Emma? He definitely couldn't use his sister's name. Mikayla? Sarah? Heather? Oh, Heather could work. "Heather." He said.

She tilted her head. "Heather?" She asked. Henry nodded. A bead of sweat had formed on his left temple and was slowly rolling towards his neck. "Ok." The group of girls walked back to their seats broken hearted.

Henry released the breath he didn't realize he was holding in. "That was close." He muttered. The bell rang and class began.

The rest of the morning went by relatively quickly. Since it was just the first day of school, each class was pretty much the same. An activity that allowed the students to introduce themselves, followed by forms and syllabi, and grading explanations. And of course in almost every period he was surrounded by girls who wanted to get to know him. He of course declined them stating that he had a girlfriend named Heather. Henry felt extreme relief when the bell rang signaling the end of fourth period and the start of his lunch.

The lunch room was already crowded by the time he got there. He sat down at one of the tables in the corner, away from everybody else. Being the new kid meant he didn't deserve to sit with everyone else. Tomorrow he would attempt to make a friend to sit with, but today he would have to be alone.

When the lunch line dwindled he got up to get his food. It was steak finger day so he got that with a side of mashed potatoes and carrots. He went back to his corner and sat down to eat. He finished relatively quickly. "I guess without people to talk to your mouth doesn't become distracted." He muttered as he laid his head down. He dozed off, waiting for the bell to ring.

"Mhm." Someone cleared their throat above him. He didn't notice. "Mhm!" The person cleared their throat louder.

Henry snored lightly before lifting his head up. He looked up and saw a girl. She had sleek shiny black hair that was pulled back in a braid which was slung around her neck over her shoulder. She had dazzling green eyes that matched his own. She was beautiful. Almost as beautiful as Astrid Hofferson. Maybe once he finished getting his revenge on her he would ask this lovely lady out on a date. He had the looks for it, she couldn't possibly refuse. She was carrying a tray of food. Was she going to sit with him? Was he going to make a friend on the first day? He smiled at her.

But she didn't return it. Instead she proceeded to take the tray of food and dump it on his head. The steak fingers went down the front of his shirt while the carrots went down the back. The mashed potatoes got into his hair, and all over his clothes.

He abruptly stood up. "What the hell?" He shouted getting the attention of the entire cafeteria. He managed to wipe the potatoes from his eyes so he could look at her. "What's your problem?"

"Me?" She shouted back. "What's your problem? You've been telling the entire student body that we've been dating! Why are you spreading these lies?" The whole lunch room had gone quiet. They were watching them like hawks wondering what was going on and what was going to happen next.

Henry stopped trying to get the food out of his clothes and looked at her. "Is your name-?"

"Heather?" She finished for him. "Yes."

Henry was shocked. He didn't realize that Heather was a common name, let alone that there was one attending Berk High School. "I… I-I."

"You, you? I don't know who you think your are, but stay away from me! Don't mention my name again!" She stomped off leaving him there in the mess.

Henry sighed. "This day keeps getting better and better." He muttered. It took almost two hours for his clothes to wash and dry. He waited in the nurse's office while they did. By the time they were finished it was time for the last period of the day. Swimming.

Again with it being the first day they didn't actually do any swimming. The coach told the students as they arrived to go wait on the bleachers for further instructions. Henry was one of the first to arrive and proceeded to sit at the top of the bleachers so he could keep an eye on the students arriving. He waited for _'her'_ , but she never showed up. He looked at his watch, the bell was about to ring. Where was she?

He got his answer as she walked into the natatorium, with Heather by her side. "Great." He muttered. They were both talking about something. Heather said something that made Astrid laugh. "Probably told her about what happened at lunch today." He muttered. "How she dumped her lunch on wittle hiccup." He clenched his fists and tried to regain control of his breathing. He was no longer a hiccup. The two girls didn't even look at him as they approached the bleachers and sat down on the front row.

When everyone had arrived the coach left his office and stood in front of them. "My name is Coach Macheals. I'll be your swimming instructor."

Henry tuned him out as he went on about safety rules and guidelines. He took all the forms handed to him, and signed what needed to be signed. The day hadn't gone at all like he had planned it, and now he was just waiting for it to end. Coach Micheals finished early and told them they could do whatever they wanted until the bell rang.

Naturally everyone pulled out their phones, but Henry just stared at Astrid. He had to find a way to get close to her, but if Heather was one of her friends, then getting close to Astrid just got a whole lot harder. Henry sighed. "This year is going to be interesting." The bell rang signaling the end of the day. Henry pulled out his phone and shot Emma a text. ' _Headed to the car. Don't leave without me. :p'_

She was quick to reply with a _'Don't be late. :p'_

Henry chuckled before shoving his phone into his pocket, putting on his backpack and walking out. He was about half way down the main hallway when he heard the shouting.

"Get away from me!" Shouted a high pitched voice.

"Look at him run." Shouted another voice. This one deeper.

"Yeah, his legs can barely keep up with that fat body of his. They're like fishlegs!" Shouted another voice. A slam could be heard followed by whimpering.

Henry looked around at the students in the hallway. They all seemed to be ignoring these voices. He, however, would not. He began heading toward the source of the noises. His hunt led him to the 400 hallway, where he found two people ganging up on someone.

Henry recognized the one being ganged up on as the kid from his English class that morning. What was his name? Franklin! But who were the other two? One had a stocky build, his shoulders were broad and his chin chiseled. He was currently holding Franklin up against the wall with his arm. The other one was much skinnier, and had long blonde hair that went down passed his shoulders. Henry watched the stock built one pull Franklin off the wall and slam him into the floor. The two boys then began to kick Franklin forcing him to curve in on himself to protect his head and vital organs.

Again Henry looked around him, astounded that the students were letting such a display of bullying happen in broad daylight. But he wasn't just going to stand there and let something like this happen. He took off his backpack and rested it against the wall. He walked towards them slowly and quietly.

The bullies were too busy with their victim to notice him until he was right on top of them. Henry roughly grabbed the shoulder of the long haired blond and pulled him away, throwing his body into the wall with relative ease. He fell to the floor before getting up and running out into the main hallway screaming.

The broad shouldered one immediately stopped kicking and looked up at Henry. Henry was surprised. This muscular person was at least half a foot shorter than him, but he pushed that thought aside. Henry had to teach him a lesson. "Why don't you pick on somebody your own size?" Henry muttered.

The other boy smiled. "If you insist." He stepped away from a whimpering Franklin. "Just remember." He tapped Henry on the chest. "You wanted this." He pulled his hand back, formed a fist, and shot it forward. But he didn't hear the _thwack_ of his fist connecting with Henry's face. Instead he realized that his punch got blocked.

Henry held the other boys hand in a death grip. "My turn." Henry said before forming his own fist and punching the boy in the face. He staggered before collapsing. He was knocked out cold.

Henry bent down to check on Franklin. "Hey." He shook him gently. "Are you alright?"

Franklin whimpered, but nodded. "Yeah." He sat up, clutching his midsection. "I'll be ok."

Henry wrapped an arm around him helping him stand up. "Is your ride here yet?" He asked.

Franklin shook his head. "I was actually on my way to the chess club."

Henry nodded. "Let's get you to the nurse first before you head to the chess club."

Franklin nodded. "Ok." They turned back to the main hallway, but were cut off by the blonde boy that Henry had thrown into the wall. And his father the principal.

Stoick took one look at the unconscious boy on the ground, and then to the wounds on Franklin. He pointed at all of them. "In my office. Now." He pointed at the boy on the floor. "And get him some ice."

 _And so concludes Henry's first day of high school. Things aren't going as planned, and now things seemed to have gotten worse! What will happen now? Will he be able to accomplish his plan to get revenge on Astrid? I understand that a lot of things happened quite fast, but this chapter is introducing the main characters for the rest of the story._

 _Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I know I'm popping them out rapidly, but like I said, I have most of the chapters planned out. Stay tuned for the next one!_


	4. Chapter 4

_So my computer's broken… Which means updating won't be every day, or every few days. This chapter was written with my phone, along with the next three… I'm going to put this story on a schedule to one update every Sunday. So every Sunday there's going to be an update._

 _Again thanks so much for all the attention this story has gotten. (Both positive and negative reviews were appreciated… no matter how nonconstructive some of them were) We're all entitled to our opinions, so I'm going to let the negativity keep coming. Not sure if that's a good idea, but I'm not gonna let the negative reviews get to me. Plz keep the trolling to minimum, if not nonexistent...Thx_

 _Anyway I hope you enjoy the chapter!_

Chapter 3: A Game of Chess

Henry sighed. "This day can't possibly get any worse." He was sitting in one of the chairs outside the principal's office along with a very nervous looking Franklin. Franklin's his arms and shoulders were shaking. He continuously rubbed his palms together. He had beads of sweat rolling down his head, and he wouldn't stop whimpering.

"Would you calm down?" Henry asked slightly annoyed.

That only seemed to make him more nervous. "E-Easy f-f-for you t-to say." He whimpered with that severe stutter of his. "T-This is t-t-the f-first time that I-I ever g-got sent to t-t-the principal's office." He pulled his knees up around himself.

Henry sighed again before placing a gentle yet firm hand on the nervous guy's shoulder. "Look. Relax alright? You were the victim, so you're not in any real trouble."

That seemed to have some effect. Franklin put his feet back on the floor and stopped shaking. "You're...You're right." He breathed a small sigh of relief.

"Better?" Henry asked.

Franklin nodded. "Yeah. Much better."

Henry patted him on the back. "Glad to hear it. You're nervousness was making me nervous." Henry could hear the other two boys involved getting scolded inside Stoick's office. His dad sounded angry.

"I wonder what our punishment's gonna be." Franklin whispered. He was starting to shake and rub his palms together again.

"Relax. I already told you you'll be fine." Henry had to place another firm hand on Franklin's shoulder. "Once we explain our side of the story we won't be in any real trouble."

"I hope you're right."

Henry could hear his dad's scolding getting louder from the other side of the door. He could almost make out what was being said. From what he could gather the other two people were named Scott and Tony. Bullying was a regular occurrence that they almost always got in trouble for around the school. His dad seemed to get angrier and angrier with every word. "Yeah." Henry muttered. "Me too."

After another fifteen minutes of listening to Stoick and the bullies argue, the door finally opened and the two boys stepped out. The one with the chiseled chin stopped in front of Henry and smirked at him. "You got lucky this time, but next time-"

"There won't be a next time." Henry stood up to stare down at him. The guy was half a foot shorter so he was literally staring down at him. The guy backed off and left along with his blonde friend.

Stoick stepped out of his office. "Franklin your parents have been notified of the incident. You will receive no punishment. You may go."

Franklin breathed a sigh of relief, but quickly took on a look of worry. "What about Henry?"

Father and son stared at each other. "That's none of your concern." Stoick said. Franklin got the message that he should leave. He gave Henry an apologetic look before putting on his backpack and walking out into the hallway.

Henry smiled nervously, but his dad didn't return it. Instead he turned around and walked back into his office, waving Henry inside. Inside Henry realized that the principal's office looked just like his dad's office at home. On the walls hung degrees from various universities stating that he had acquired his degree in education. There were also various flags from universities across the country. There was one big oak desk right in the center, and on that desk sat three monitors along with various photos of friends and family. Stoick sat in a big black leather chair, while Henry chose one of the smaller wooden ones on the opposite side of the desk.

Stoick sighed rubbing his forehead. "Oh Henry, what are we going to do with you."

"Dad let me explain. I-"

"No." Stoick interrupted. "Here on school grounds I am not 'Dad.' Here you will address me as Mr. Haddock." Henry looked at him wide eyed. "Understand?" Stoick asked.

Henry looked down and sighed. "Yes sir."

Stoick nodded. "Good." He leaned forward resting his elbows on the desk. "Now first let me say that you are not getting punished for what happened today, but I do hope that you don't wish to continue picking fights with your classmates for the rest of the year.

"But da-… Mr. Haddock, I didn't start anything. In lunch some chick named Heather dumped her lunch on me-"

"After you spread the false rumor you two were boyfriend and girlfriend."

"God how fast does news travel around here?" Henry banged his head against the desk.

Stoick chuckled. "Trust me, when someone as popular as Heather suddenly starts dating the new kid nobody's heard of before, that's like 'breaking news' in the minds of folks around here."

Henry sighed into the desk. "I just hope that people will forget about it now that Heather has publicly set the record straight."

"I wouldn't count on it." Stoick looked at his computer screen and began to type. "Now about the incident that took place after school in the 400 hallway."

Henry lifted his head from the desk. He had a very noticeable red mark on his forehead. "What about it? I noticed someone getting bullied and put a stop to it while everyone else ignored it."

"I know Henry." Stoick stopped typing and clicked on something. Suddenly the printer behind him dinged before something began printing. "I'm going to have you sign a statement stating that you were not the bully and not the instigator."

"Just like that?" Henry asked.

"No, not for me. I get to file a bunch of paperwork and put marks on permanent records." The printer stopped. Stoick reached around to grab the statement.

"Does that include my record?" Henry asked taking the paper. He grabbed a pen from the cup next to the computer.

Stoick nodded. "Sadly yes, but it won't be as harsh as the ones Tony and Scott will be getting."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Henry handed the paper back and put the pen back into the cup. "I don't want my record saying I'm someone that beats up other people for fun"

Stoick sighed rubbing his forehead. "It's not going to be forever and that's not what it's going to say. It will sit on your record for about 90 days, and will disappear. I promise you, your future is not at risk."

Henry sighed relieved. "Thanks dad." Stoick glared at him. "I mean

Mr. Haddock."

Stoick nodded. "Now with all that out of the way, you should head home. I have a meeting tonight and will be home late." He went back to typing on his computer.

Henry stood up. "OK." He shouldered his backpack and walked out. "See you later then."

By now the school was relatively empty. He saw the occasional student or teacher coming out of a classroom or hallway. They would smile and wave and he smile and wave back. "Well I certainly didn't accomplish much today." He muttered to himself. "Managed to spread a rumor, got in trouble for helping someone, and I never got to talk to Astrid." He stopped at the exit, resting his hand on the push bar. He sighed, "There's no way this day can get any worse." He opened the door and was proven wrong.

He stood there mouth agape, eyes wide in shock. His sister's parking space was empty. Emma wasn't here. "She left me here."

He heard the exit open and someone approaching. They stopped next to him. "Oh hey Henry." Franklin said.

"She left me here."

"Listen thanks for saving me earlier."

"She left me here."

"And teaching Scott and Tony the lesson they deserved."

"She left me here."

Franklin frowned. Henry seemed to be in some kind of trance. HE just stared out into the parking lot. "Hey." He tapped Henry on the shoulder. "You alright."

"She left me here."

"Who left you here?"

Henry turned and looked at him. "Emma."

"Emma?" Franklin asked. He didn't know a lot of upperclassman, actually he didn't know any upperclassman, so he had no idea who Emma was. "Who's Emma."

"My sister." Henry angrily pulled his phone out. He found her name in the contact list and began to type. _'Hey!'_

Franklin tilted his head. "Why would your sister leave you here?"

"Good question!" Henry shouted. His phone buzzed. He looked down at it, but all he got back for a reply was _'Hey :)'_

Hiccup tried to keep his breathing under control. _'Did u forget something?"_

' _Don't think so.'_

 _'_ _REALLY!'_

 _'_ _I told u not to be late :p'_

Henry let out an annoyed sigh. _'I was a bit preoccupied with other things.'_

 _'_ _What kind of things?'_

Henry groaned. "I don't have time for this." Franklin looked at him but said nothing. ' _I'll tell u later.'_

 _'_ _Can u tell me now?'_

 _'_ _CAN I GET A RIDE PLZ!'_

 _'_ _Calm down I'm on my way. LOL'_

Henry didn't reply, instead he just angrily shoved his phone back into his pocket. He sighed rubbing his temples. A small migraine was forming. He would have to take some painkillers later.

"Is your ride coming?"

"I don't know." The two stood in an awkward silence for a few moments. Henry turned to Franklin. "What are you still doing here? I figured you would have gone home."

"Well when I got out here my mom wasn't here yet so I ran back to the club room to do something."

"What did you do?"

He shrugged. "Socialized. Played a quick round. If you want tomorrow I can introduce you to the crew."

Henry chuckled. "The crew?"

Franklin smiled. "That's what we call ourselves. The chess crew." he pumped his chest out with pride. "The best chess players this side of the district." A silver Hyundai turned into the parking lot. "Oh! That's my ride." The car stopped. He opened the passenger door, and climbed in. He rolled down the window. "Hey, you wanna come over? Play a round or two?"

Henry thought about the conversation he just finished with his sister. She said she was on her way. It would be easier on everyone if he just stayed there. But she left him here. She stranded her poor baby brother at the government institution known as Berk High School to fend for himself. If she wanted to make his life difficult, then he would do the same. "That sounds like a lovely idea." He climbed in the back of the Hyundai.

Franklin turned back to look at him. "Um. Shouldn't you text your sister to let her know your not gonna be here?"

Henry shrugged. "She'll figure it out." Franklin wasn't sure if that was such a good idea, but he didn't have any siblings so he didn't know how they treated each other.

Henry's phone buzzed as soon as they pulled into Franklin's drive way. _'I'm here. Where are u?'_

 _'_ _U were late so I hitched a ride.' "_ Payback's a bitch." Henry muttered.

 _'_ _Are u serious?'_

 _'_ _Yes.'_

 _'_ _Don't do this to me bro! If dad finds out I lost u I'll be a dead woman!'_

Henry chuckled. _'Relax I'm at a friend's house.'_ Henry followed Franklin and his mom out of the car and towards the house.

 _'_ _What's the address?'_

"Hey Franklin my sister wants to know your address so she can pick me up."

Franklin gave it to him and he relayed it to his ride. As soon as the door to the house was unlocked Franklin immediately led Henry up to his room. Henry had underestimated how much Franklin enjoyed chess. Not only did the door have a full sized wall paper of a rook on it, but inside the room was full of trophies.

There must have been at least half a dozen shelves and each one was filled up with trophies medals and ribbons of various shapes, sizes, and colors. "Wow." Was all Henry could say. He looked on the nightstand and saw a photo of what he assumed to be a baby Franklin making the first move of a game.

"Yeah wow." Franklin said. He pointed at one of the trophies. "I won this one at the city hall Chess Tourney three years ago." He pointed to another one. "This one was won during my first district championship. And this one," he put his hand down. He didn't look so excited anymore. "was the last trophy I ever won."

Henry frowned. "What do you mean the last trophy?" Franklin spaced out, obviously deeply thinking about something negative. "Hey." Henry snapped his fingers to get the boy's attention.

Franklin blinked, returning to normal. "It's not important." He moved over to his closet and pulled out a small folding table. "Wanna play a round while we wait for your sister to come get you?"

Henry shrugged. "Sure."

Franklin smiled. "Alright, let me get everything set up." He placed the table next to the bed before going back into the closet and grabbing what looked like a matching chair. Once the chair and table were set he went to the corner of the room adjacent to the door. There was a chest there. He opened it up and pulled out a boxed chess set.

Henry moved over and gazed into the chest. "Wow." In the chest there were multiple chess sets. Each a different color. Some were blue vs purple, some red vs orange, and then there were the standard black vs white. It also looked like different material went into each one. "Did you buy all of these?"

Franklin nodded. "My dad got me my first chess set when I was three years old. I keep it in my closet, it never gets played with. He taught me to play, my dad, said that I was going to be a chess master like him..." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, shall we begin?"

"Sure." Henry sat on the chair.

"What color do you want to be?"

"White goes first right?" Franklin nodded. "Then white."

"It's not like it's going to help you." Franklin chuckled setting up the pieces across the board.

"We'll see."

Henry moved his first pawn. Franklin called it with his own. "I just noticed something." Henry said moving another pawn.

"What?" Franklin also moved another pawn forward.

Henry moved another pawn. "You're not stuttering anymore."

Franklin moved out one of his knights. "I only do that when I'm either really nervous or incredibly anxious."

Henry moved yet another pawn. "So what are you now?"

Franklin moved his other knight out. "Chess keeps me calm."

"You really like this game don't you?" Henry moved his left bishop out to take a pawn that had gotten a little to close to his side.

"I've been playing it for almost thirteen years now." Franklin moved his right bishop to a6.

"Wow." Henry moved out his right knight to a3.

Franklin castled his king. "Yeah my dad really wanted me to become a master at it."

Henry really wanted to find out who his dad was. Franklin obviously really looked up to him, but there weren't any pictures of him on the walls. Henry didn't ask anything about him because he figured it wasn't any of his business. He moved another pawn forward. "So are you?"

Franklin moved his left knight to f5. "Not officially. Though I consider myself to be pretty good."

Henry moved his left rook to a3. "How good?"

Franklin took Henry's bishop with his knight. "You're about to find out.

The game went on. By the time the middlegame began Franklin had taken one of Henry's knights, one of his bishops, one of his rooks, and four of his pawns. While Henry only had one bishop and three pawns.

Franklin moved his queen to d4. "So were you being serious?"

Henry retreated the rook that was in range. "What do you mean?"

Franklin kept his queen where it was and for the first time in the game moved his king forward. "This morning you said your plan for this year was to get revenge on someone."

"Oh that." He moved his own king forward. "Yeah I was."

"Is it safe to ask who?" Franklin moved his knight forward to e4.

Henry thought about it. Should he tell Franklin about his plan to get revenge on Astrid? What if he knew Astrid. What of he was friends with her and alerted her to it? "It's not important." He moved his queen forward to g3.

"What did this person do exactly?" Franklin moved his own queen behind Henry's battle line to a2. "Check."

Henry moved his king behind his rook. "Let's just say we were," he paused trying to think about what to call her.

Franklin moved his queen back so the rook wouldn't take it out. "Were what?"

"Good friends." Henry used his knight to take out one of Franklin's rooks.

"What happened?" Franklin moved one of his pawns forward.

Henry sighed. Man was this guy nosy. "Being the idiot that I was, I asked her out-"

"Her?"

"Yes her. Anyway I asked her out and instead of getting a simple 'no' or 'let's just stay friends' she proceeded to belittle me and called me a hiccup."

"You alright dude?" Franklin asked. "You're choking the life out of that pawn there."

Henry released the poor pawn and set it down on the table. "Sorry." Henry took out the pawn with his own.

"You gonna want any help with getting your revenge on this person?" Franklin moved his bishop forward, the way now clear thanks to Henry taking the bait and moving his pawn out of the way. "Check."

Henry moved his king back a space. "No, I think I've got it figured out." He moved his queen and took out the bishop.

"How about some advice at least." Franklin moved another pawn forward.

Henry though about it. What did this guy know about getting revenge on people? Then again it's not like Henry would lose anything listening to advice from someone. It would most likely go in one ear and out the other anyway. "Sure." Henry moved his king out of the pawns diagonal path. .

"High school is like a game of chess." He moved his knight forward.

"What do you mean?" Henry took out the knight with his queen.

"You've got to plan ahead." Franklin took out the queen with his rook.

Henry frowned. This game was about to end, and he didn't even come close to beating him. "Alright?" He realized his king was cut off from the rest of his pieces. He moved his king back a space.

"Coordinate your moves quickly and carefully, or else your opponents will gain the upper hand." He moved his queen back to a2. "Checkmate."

Henry was shocked. He had lost almost all of his pieces, while taking barely any of his opponent's. He looked at his watch, the game only lasted 15 minutes, and he just got his ass kicked. He did several double takes to see he could somehow get out of this. Nothing worked, he was trapped. "Well, good game I guess."

"Yeah," Franklin stood up and stretched. "You too."

Henry's phone buzzed. ' _I'm here.'_

 _'_ _Be out in a sec.'_ "Well my rides here."

"Ok." Franklin opened the door and he and Henry moved downstairs.

Henry grabbed his backpack by the front door. "Well see you tomorrow."

"Yep. Hey you want my number so we can keep in touch?"

Henry shrugged. "Sure. Thanks for inviting me over Franklin."

"Call me Frank."

"Okay, thanks Frank." Once the numbers were exchanged Henry left the house and found Emma parked on the curb.

"So, what did you learn in school today?" Emma asked once Henry was in the car.

"That I need to find a better mode of transportation." Henry muttered.

Emma scoffed. "I told you not to be late."

Henry sighed annoyed. "Someone was getting bullied. I had to put a stop to it."

"Did you?"

"Yes."

"Good." They left the neighborhood and turned onto the main road. "So how's that revenge plan of yours coming along?"

Henry's mind went blank. How was his revenge plan going? Granted it had only been a day, but he didn't exactly accomplish anything that day. "Oh it's great. I kept a close eye on her, found out where she frequents, you know, met some of her friends-"

"And you're currently dating Heather."

Henry sighed once again banging his head on the nearest flat object. This time it was the window. "You know about that too huh?"

Emma laughed. "Honey I'm sure the whole school knows at this point."

Henry sighed. "I'm not dating Heather. I just needed some form of excuse to get the people off me."

"Well it's gonna be hard to get close to Astrid now that you're hated by one of her best friends."

Henry's head lifted from the window. Once again he had a noticeable red mark on his forehead. "Wait Heather is one of Astrid's best friends?" He figured they were friends because they were talking to each other during swim class today, but if they were best friends…

"Yeah, they're near inseparable. Whatever one knows, usually the other also knows."

"How do you know this?" Henry asked.

"You asked me to be your spy remember?"

"Oh yeah. Do you think you could help me?" Henry tried to put on his best puppy dog face.

"Aw." Emma patted his cheek. "Sorry buddy, but now that you're back in the picture, I'm retired. You're on your own."

Henry sighed. He looked out the window at the rapidly passing landscape. He had to find a new path to getting close to Astrid. _High school is like a game of chess._ Frank had told him. _Strategy is the key._ That's what he needed. A strategy. But what kind pf strategy? Getting close to Heather seemed to like the logical way to go, Astrid was like the king, and to get to the king, one had to take out the pawns.

 _Coordinate your moves quickly and carefully or else your opponents will gain the upper hand._ Henry needed to think this through. How was he going to get close to Heather? She told him to never speak to her or mention her name again.

"So what are you going to do?" Emma asked as they turned into their driveway. She pressed the button on her garage door opener.

 _You've got to plan ahead._ Henry smiled. He knew exactly what he was going to do. "Guess I'm gonna have to get close to Heather in order to get close to Astrid."

"How do you plan to do that? She told you to never talk to her again remember? After that lie you spread about the two of you? Being together and all?

Henry sighed. "Yes I remember. How long do you plan on bringing that up?"

Emma chuckled. "Until I don't find it funny anymore."

Henry gave an annoyed sigh. "Thanks... I think."

"Trust me," Emma continued "the whole school will be breathing down your neck tomorrow about it, so you'd best prepare for it now."

"Again. Thanks"

"Anyway. How do you plan on getting close to Heather?"

 _You've got to plan ahead._ Henry gave a confident grin. "Guess I'll have to start with an apology."

 _Hope you enjoyed the chapter. To those wanting to know if this is going to be a Hiccstrid story, let me just tell you… You're going to have to be surprised! Before you all start making assumptions that I don't know either, let me say that I've planned this story out from beginning to end, and have all the major plot points written down._

 _Know that certain things will happen without warning that will make y'all hate me. And I will love all the hate I receive at those points because it will tell me I did it right._

 _Anyway again thanks for all the reviews, favs, and follows. Till next time! Peace!_


	5. Chapter 5

**_Let me just say that I am so so sorry for not updating on Sunday like I said I would. Work called me in and I didn't make it back until 1am today. I'm about to head back to work now, so I'm posting this before I go. I will post another chapter later this week, to make up for not posting yesterday like I said I would._**

 ** _Good news though. My computer is in the shop and will be fixed and usable again very soon (I hope). Once again plz bear with me during these now random updates._**

 ** _For those of you that disliked Hiccup in the second chapter, you're probably not going to like him in this chapter either… In fact, most likely everyone is going to hate the start of this chapter… Fair warning._**

 ** _ENJOY!_**

Chapter 4: The Note

Henry lay his head down on his desk between his arms. He sighed heavily. It had been a whole week since the whole ordeal on the first day, and he still hadn't come close to apologizing to Heather. Frank's advice was still fresh in his mind. He needed a strategy to get close to Heather, but there was a slight problem.

Besides swimming at the end of the day, he didn't have any classes with her. She was never alone for him to talk to either. Every time he saw her in the halls she was with Astrid and another blonde girl. It was as if she was avoiding him like the plague.

 _Today will be the day_. _I'll corner her after school if I have to, but she's going to listen to my apology and accept it._ He closed his eyes and began brainstorming ideas on what he would say.

He would corner her after school. They were finally going to start actually swimming and assign lanes today, so maybe he would corner her with his shirt off, showing off all the progress he made last year. She wouldn't be able to take her eyes off of his body.

"Look Heather, I know we've had a rocky start, what with the lying and all, but let me be the first to say I'm sorry for all the trouble I have caused you, and I hope we can be friends."Henry gave off his signature smile showing white teeth and sparkling eyes.

Heather's cheeks reddened, and her breath caught in her throat as she tried to form words. Her eyes traveled down his body, her gaze lingering on his chiseled torso. "Oh Henry, if I had known you were this hot underneath those clothes, I wouldn't have reacted that way." Her hands moved to touch his abs, rubbing slowly up and down enjoying the feel. "Of course I'll be your girlfriend." She kissed him. Slow and sensually their lips moved. They released with a wet smack as his lips moved behind her ear. Heather sighed, wrapping her arms around his neck to bring him closer. "Oh Henry." She sighed. "Henry. Henry."

"HENRY!" Heather's voice was no longer soft and feminine. Instead it was loud and rough.

Henry's head shot from the desk, his eyes wide and alert. "Who, what, where?" The entire class was staring at him. Many trying to hold in their laughter.

Mr. Heddly was glaring at him. "Are you finished napping?" Henry swallowed and nodded. "Good. I understand that this is the first period of the day, and many of you are not fully awake yet, but if I have to stay awake to teach, then it's only fair for you all to stay awake and listen."

"Sorry." Henry muttered.

"You're okay, just try not to let it happen again in the future."

"Yes sir."

Mr. Heddly nodded. "Now then, as I was saying. Open house is tomorrow night. Your parents will be coming up to the school, and will go to all your classes. You can walk them to each one, showing them the route you take. They will be getting forms and syllabuses of their own." Someone raised their hand. "Yes?"

"Is it mandatory for us to come?"

"No, but I might give a one hundred daily grade for those that I do see." Mr Heddly responded. "Any more questions?" No one else raised their hands. "Good. Now, locker assignments. Henry, since you weren't here during orientation in August you weren't given a locker. Pass this back to him would you?" He handed it to Astrid.

She didn't pass it back right away though, instead staring at it. Henry wasn't sure what she was thinking about. Probably trying to figure out if it was the same Henry she ridiculed last year. Mr. Heddly cleared his throat getting her attention. She quickly passed it behind her without looking. It passed through several more people before reaching him. Henry took the paper. His locker was in the 400 halls. Good, so was his second period.

"After class you can go put all your supplies in it so you're not stuck carrying everything around all year."

Henry looked up from the paper. "Thanks." Mr Heddly nodded as the bell rang.

"Alright class remember, open house tomorrow." Of course nobody was listening as everyone quickly gathered their things and walked into the hallway.

"You alright?" Frank asked. Their second period classes were across the hall from each other so they could go in the same direction.

"Yeah." Henry answered. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Frank shrugged. "Ever since we played that game of chess at my house last week you've been doing an awful lot of randomly spacing out during class and conversations."

They turned out into the main hallway. "I've just got a lot on my mind right now." He leaned right to avoid someone not paying attention where they were going.

"Is this about your revenge?"

"Shhh. What if she heard you?"

Frank looked around confused. "I still don't even know who it's against. And no offense but I'm pretty sure I'm the only friend you have so the odds of whoever it is you're after finding out about it are astronomical right now."

"Sorry." Henry said. He shrugged his shoulders to keep his backpack from falling. He changed the subject. "I'm glad I finally got a locker now. Don't have to keep carrying all my crap around anymore."

"And it's in the same route as your classes, which means you'll never have to go out of your way to get your stuff, which cuts the odds of you ever being late to a class in half."

They turned into the 400 hall. Henry's locker was further down the hall than his classroom. "Well, I guess I'll see you after class." Franklin said as he turned into his classroom.

"See ya Frank." They high fived each other as they separated.

Henry kept walking. Since the lockers were in the 400 hall they were numbered 400, to 475. They were tall lockers. Tall and thin. They were the Berk High School colors of blue and gray, and they lined both sides of the hallway. He found his locker at the very end on the left. He checked the paper he was given for the combination. Once the door was open he went about putting his text books into it.

He checked his watch. "Two minutes to spare." He closed his locker door and headed to class. He was about half way down the hallway when he found his path blocked. Surprisingly the one blocking his way was the person he had been trying to talk to all week. "Heather?"

"Meet me in the library during lunch." She said nothing more before going into the same classroom Frank went into. Henry stood there confused, but the ringing of the final bell pulled him out of it. He walked into World History class.

He didn't pay much attention to the lecture. The teacher was going on about the founding of the Egyptian Empire. But he was thinking about Heather. He had to tread lightly. The last time a girl told him to meet them somewhere he got entirely different results than what he was expecting.

What if she and Astrid double teamed him this time. What if they both decided to dump their lunches on him. Wait food wasn't even allowed in the library so the possibility of that happening was minuscule. Whatever her plan was, the good news was that he finally had the opportunity to talk to her, and he was gonna take it.

Class couldn't end fast enough. He left the room, anxiously waiting for Frank to come into the hallway. Heather must have already left because he didn't see her walk out. "Hey Henry." Frank said as he exited his class. He stopped after seeing the look on his friend's face. "What's got you so excited?"

"I have good news. Or at least I hope it's good news. I mean it's not bad news. I think. Maybe. Hopefully."

"Yes?" Frank asked. "Get on with it."

"Heather asked me to meet her in the library during lunch."

Frank took on a look of confusion. "I don't get it. Wait does this have something to do with your revenge?"

Henry stopped. Crap, he might have just given away his target. He should have kept his mouth shut. Frank most likely knew who Heather was. And if he knew Heather, then he most definitely knew Astrid. He waited, expecting Frank to connect the dots, but if Frank did figure it out, he didn't let on.

Instead he kept walking and said "Good luck."

"Thanks." They separated down different hallways this time on their way to third period.

The rest of the morning went by slowly. Henry grew more and more anxious the closer the clock ticked to his lunch period. He figured he wouldn't like whatever she had to say to him. She was most likely going to tell him to stop following her. Since that was what he had been doing all week. Yeah, that had to be it.

When his fourth period finally ended he deliberately took the longest route he knew to the library. If he was going to get belittled again, the least he could do was make her wait. When he made it to the library he found her sitting near the back at one of the tables. Alone. Without Astrid. Weird. She was reading something. She had her back turned so he couldn't tell what it was.

He opened the door, and she immediately turned around and made eye contact with him. It was as if she was listening for the sound of the door. Anticipating his arrival. She waved him over with a smile on her face.

He made his approach slowly. Eyeing all the exits, and mapping the fastest route out just in case things got ugly and she decided to jump him. His backpack weighed him down, he would have to leave it. There were plenty of chairs, so he could make obstacles for her making it harder to get him if she gave chase.

But when he reached the table things turned out quite differently. She did jump him, but not in a harmful way. Instead she hugged him. Henry was too shocked to return it. She pulled away. "It's so good to see you again Henry." She smiled.

Henry said nothing. His lips were dry for some reason. He licked his lips and smacked them together. He swallowed, gulping loudly. He opened his mouth to say something, but all they came out was a weak croak.

Heather didn't take notice. "Please sit down, there's some things we need to talk about." She went around to the other side of the table and pulled a chair out. She guided him to it and sat him down before retaking her own seat. "First of all. Let me apologize for my atrocious behavior last week. Had I known it was you I wouldn't have acted the way I did."

Again Henry said nothing. He was going through his memory trying to find this girl. When did he see her? He definitely didn't know her during middle school. Right?

Again she didn't notice and kept talking. "Second of all." She lowered her voice. "I know what you're doing."

That snapped him out of it. "Wait wait wait." He waved his hands in front of himself, his arms out stretched. "Who are you?"

Heather chuckled. "It's me Heather remember? We had English class together back in eighth grade?"

Henry thought back. He didn't remember her. The only friend her ever had was Astrid. Wait if she knew him from that far back, then… "Hold on a second. If you knew who I was, why did you dump your lunch on me?"

She looked down, face red with embarrassment. "Sorry about that. My friends and family tell me I have some serious anger issues and have been known to lash out on occasion. Guess you caught me on a bad day."

 _That's your excuse?_ Henry chuckled lightly. "Don't worry about it, I'm sure if someone was spreading a false rumor about me I would've done the same thing." Heather sighed relieved. "Anyway," Henry continued "what was that second thing you said?"

Heather smiled before lowering her voice. "I know what you're up to."

Henry gulped. Did Frank tell her? No that was impossible, he had no idea what the plan was. That only left Emma. Did Emma tell her? Was Emma a double agent? Apparently he had nothing to worry about as Heather didn't seem to have any clue as to what was going on.

"Your here to get back together with Astrid aren't you."

Henry's breath caught in his throat. He started coughing. "What-" He coughed some more. "What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean." She leaned closer. "You want to date Astrid. And I'm going to help you do that."

He gulped. This meeting had gone the complete opposite direction from what he had imagined. Granted it didn't go the violent way, but at least if it had he would have been able to walk out. Now he had to find some way to talk his way out of this. "What makes you think I want your help?"

She chuckled evilly. "You don't want my help. You need it."

Henry shuddered. "Fine, you caught me. I'm trying to get back together with Astrid."

Heather squealed excitedly drawing the attention of everyone in the library. A chorus of shushes ensued. "Sorry." She whispered. "I knew it."

Henry nodded. "Now that you know the truth you can't tell anyone. None of your friends can know what I'm doing. Especially Astrid."

Heather nodded. "I won't tell a soul."

Henry stood up. "Good." He stretched. "Now then, I'm starved. Think I'm gonna go get myself something to eat before the bell rings." He checked his watch, he still had fifteen minutes.

"Yeah." Heather also stood. "Astrid and Rachel are probably wondering where I am. Meet me here tomorrow after school and we'll brainstorm ways for getting you and Astrid together."

"Isn't Open House tomorrow?" Henry asked.

"Crap it is." Heather stroked her chin, deep in thought. She reached into her backpack and pulled out her spiral. She wrote down her phone number before ripping out the paper and handing it to him. "Call me tonight and we'll brainstorm ideas." She picked up her stuff and left before he could say anything more.

Henry stared at the paper. There was no way plans ever went this smoothly for anyone, especially for him. His strategy hadn't gone exactly as planned, but it didn't matter. He now he had the pawn in his grasp. He was one step closer to checkmate.

He was glad there wasn't a line in the lunch room when he got there. With only 10 minutes left he was cutting it pretty close. He found Frank, Evan, and Gustav at their usual table. Evan and Gustav were part of the 'Chess Crew' that Frank had mentioned on the first day. Apparently they had been playing the game for almost as long as he had, and were just as good. When Henry became a member of the chess club, he had the displeasure of playing against all three of them, and they did not take it easy on him. But they were a friendly group when they weren't in front of a chess board, so Henry didn't mind them.

They saved him a seat. He sat down and with little time, began scarfing down his food. They all stared at him. "So how'd it go?" Frank asked.

"Good." Henry said between bites.

"That's it?" Evan asked. "Come on give us details. One of the most popular girls in school asked for private time with you." He leaned closer. "You can't tell me that y'all didn't do anything..."

"We talked." Henry opened his milk carton and drank.

"About what?" asked Gustav.

"He's got that whole revenge thing going on remember?" Frank said.

Both of them groaned. "That's what it was about?" Evan asked. "You have an opportunity to get together with THE Heather, and you blow it over some stupid revenge plan?"

Henry finished his food and drank the rest of his milk. "She's helping me get my revenge." He stood up to take his trash to the trash can. "Even though she may not realize it." He walked away.

When he got back they looked at him confused. "What?"

"Is she helping you willingly?" Evan asked.

"Of course." Henry answered.

"You're gonna tell her right?" Frank asked. "Obviously whoever you're revenge is against is someone close to her. You have to tell her that she's going to bring ill will on someone inadvertently."

Henry shrugged. "She'll figure it out."

"Come on man." Frank said. "Don't be like that."

Henry sighed. "I'll tell her tomorrow."

Frank clapped him on the back. "Good." The bell rang signaling the end of lunch. They all stood up, said their 'See ya's' and went their separate ways to class.

The rest of the day went by relatively smoothly. Before long the bell rang signaling the start of seventh period. He made a stop by his locker to leave his backpack. No reason to take it to swim class.

He was the first to arrive. He went to the locker room and changed into his speedo. He grabbed his goggles and went to sit on the bleachers to await further instructions. The rest of the students trickled in, either by themselves, or in groups of twos and threes.

Henry watched them enter and exit the locker-rooms. Finally Astrid came in. She glanced up at him, but was quick to look away. She left her backpack on the bleachers before rushing to the locker-room. Henry sighed. Since the first day she had also gone out of her way to avoid him. What was with that girl?

Henry looked up to see Heather exit the locker room. He about fell out of his seat. She was wearing a black one piece with a green squiggle line that traveled traveled from her waist to her chest. She could be a model for one piece swimwear. She smiled up at him before taking a seat on the front row.

Astrid exited the locker room and this time Henry did fall out of his seat. He fell back and landed with a thud. Astrid was sporting a black and blue one piece. Her blonde hair was tied into a loose bun, allowing her beautiful blue eyes to shine brightly, aided by the blue of her suit. Henry sighed, staring at her. She must have sensed it because her gaze drifted up to him. Henry shook his head and looked down. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Astrid still looking his way.

She continued looking for a few more moments before making her way to the bleachers and sitting down next to Heather. Henry gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. He was not going to fall in love with Astrid. He tried, and got hurt. There was no way he was going to go down that painful emotional road again. He breathed deeply before releasing long and slow, calming down. "Never again." He whispered.

Coach Micheals left his office to confront everyone. "Alright, today we're going to be doing lane assignments. You're going to be swimming 600 yards, and you're going to be timed." He looked at his clip board. "Alright since there's twenty six of us, I think we'll do it in four groups of six, and then have the last group just be a duo." He reached up and felt around his neck. "Seems I've left my whistle in the office. Be right back."

Henry looked at Astrid. She was talking to Heather about something. Were they talking about what Heather and he talked about in the library today? Was Heather's plan not to get them together, but to embarrass him in some way? Astrid knew a lot about him from their years of friendship. What if Heather was just looking for more ways to get back at him for that rumor?

Coach Micheals left his office and confronted them again. "These will be random because alphabetical order is overrated." He walked over to the pool and pointed at the first lane. He called out the first set of names. "Now, I need another group of six to come to this side of the pool." He walked to the opposite end and grabbed six number flip charts. Henry walked over and grabbed one, along with five others. Heather and Astrid remained on the bleachers.

"Your job will be to put these under the water when the swimmer reaches your end to show them what lap they're on. For those of you that don't know, 600 yards is twenty four laps. Do we all understand our duties?" Everyone nodded. "Good. Let's begin." Coach Micheals moved to the other side of the pool. "Alright swimmers, go ahead and jump in. This end of the pool isn't deep enough for diving so we're going to do this from a kick start." They all jumped in, splashing water as they did so. "On my whistle we'll begin. Ready? 3, 2, 1." He blew his whistle causing a loud _BRRRRRRRP!_ To echo around the natatorium. The swimmers kicked off, and the in a flurry of arms and legs, began swimming.

Henry zoned out as he did his job. He flipped the numbers and held the chart beneath the water showing the swimmers what lap they were on. He didn't pay attention on who was called, and before he knew it it was his turn.

"Henry." Micheals pointed at the center lane. "Astrid." He pointed at the one next to it.

Wait what? Henry dug his finger in his ear to make sure there was nothing to impede his hearing. "Repeat?"

"Henry, please come to this lane." Micheals pointed at the lane.

Heather came over and took the flip chart from him. "Be careful." She whispered into his ear. "She's very competitive and hates to lose."

Henry chuckled nervously. "Thanks?" He made his way over to the other side of the pool and jumped in. Astrid stared straight ahead, she was wearing a light blue swim cap and had her goggles on blocking her eyes. Henry sighed before putting on his own goggles.

"Swimmers take your mark. Get set." _BRRRRRRRRRRRP!_

Henry kicked off with his legs and began to swim. Heather said Astrid hated to lose. Maybe he should beat her. Maybe then she'll see just how much of a 'hiccup' he really was. He kicked harder. He didn't care if Astrid hated losing. He would show her just how much he changed, maybe she'd take notice and apologize. Then he could win her heart, before stomping on it. He reached the other end and front flipped before pushing off the wall. He surfaced and kicked harder.

From the corner of his eye he could see Astrid and him were about neck and neck. She seemed just as competitive as him. The race against time had turned into a race against each other. Henry mentally shrugged. If she thought she could keep up with him she had another thing coming. His adrenaline kicked in as he kicked harder.

Henry felt like he was in another world. He lost track of time as everything around him became a blur. He kicked harder. He could no longer see Astrid. He kicked harder. He looked up to see 24 beneath the water. He was on his last lap, and he didn't even feel out of breath. He kicked harder. He front flipped before kicking off the wall. He saw her, she was several swimmer lengths behind him. He kicked harder.

He could hear people cheering from the side of the pool. Were they cheering him on? Apparently not as he could once again see Astrid in his peripherals. She was once again neck and neck with him. Henry always knew Astrid was competitive, but not on this level. Heather wasn't kidding when she said Astrid hated losing. He kicked harder.

Neck and neck they swam. It had to have been the longest 25 yards ever made. It had no end as he kept swimming. He kicked harder, and stretched his body, trying desperately to reach the wall first. When he finally touched it he lifted his head from the water breathing hard. People were clapping and cheering. He looked next to Astrid's lane, but she wasn't there. She was walking toward the locker-room. She opened and closed the door behind her. She didn't look back once.

Henry sighed before climbing out himself. Coach Micheals was smiling widely at him. "Do you have any idea what you two just did?" Henry removed his goggles, still trying to catch his breath he was unable to speak. So he just shook his head. "You two just set a new school record! Maybe even a new world record!"

"What." He breathed deeply before exhaling. "What was the time?"

Coach Micheals showed him his timer. It read 7:22.33. "Is that good?" Henry asked.

"Good? It's fantastic! That's the current world record for the 880 free style short course! If you're this fast now, then by your senior year we can have you representing us in the nationals!" He clapped Henry on the back. "In fact, I think we've found our team captain!"

Everyone seemed open to the idea as they clapped and cheered. Heather on the other hand ran to the locker-room, most likely to check on her friend. Henry moved to sit on the bleachers to catch his breath. His adrenaline was wearing off and his body was beginning to ache slightly. He sighed. He knew he was fast, but did he beat Astrid?

Someone walked passed him. He reached out and grabbed the guy's wrist. "Who touched the wall first?"

"I couldn't tell."

Henry sighed again. "Great." He and Astrid were the last ones, which meant class would be ending soon. He went into the locker room to change. When he asked other people, he got the same answer. It was undecided on who touched the wall first. Without wall panels, it was impossible to figure it out.

The bell rang signaling the end of the day. He texted Emma letting her know he had to stop by his locker before going to the car. She sent back the standard don't be late or I'll leave you behind.

Henry slowly made his way down the hallway. Apparently he and Astrid were about the same now when it came to athleticism. Or at least in the sport of swimming. He turned down the 400 hallway. He began thinking about Heather. She said she was going to help him get to Astrid. What exactly did she have in mind? He had never dated before so he had no idea what girls liked.

He stopped in his tracks. Something dawned on him. If Heather recognized him, then did that mean that Astrid did too? Was Astrid already well aware of his plans? No wonder she was avoiding him. Henry sighed and kept walking. He made it to his locker. "I wouldn't want to date someone out to get me." He shook his head and took on a look of determination. "No, stick to the plan. She called me a hiccup. She ripped my heart out. She deserves what's coming to her."

Henry opened his locker. "Huh?" Something flew out. A tiny white piece of paper flew from the locker, and gently floated to the floor. "What the?" He bent down to pick it up. It appeared to be folded. _Must be some love note that someone left in the wrong locker._ Henry unfolded the paper and was proven wrong.

His throat locked up, and his mouth went dry. He couldn't breathe. He lost his balance and had to lean against the locker for support. He looked around, the few people that were in the hallway went about their daily business, not paying attention. He swallowed thickly. He felt like he was going to be sick. Written on the little paper were three simple words.

 _'_ _Welcome Back Hiccup'_

 ** _At the request of a reviewer all author's notes shall look like this from now on. Again I do sincerely apologize for not following through on my promise of a Sunday update. I hope y'all can forgive me._**

 ** _Again, another update will be coming later this week. More than likely either later today or tomorrow, to make up for not following through yesterday._**

 ** _Anyway thanks for the favs, follows, and reviews! Hope you enjoyed! Till next time! Peace!_**


	6. Chapter 6

_**Hey guys... So first let me say that yes I'm still alive. Secondly I want to apologize for my extended absence. Now while most authors get on here and give some kind of excuse, I'm not going to do that. Instead I'm just going to make an announcement. I know this is probably not something y'all want to hear, but I hope soon I'll be able to make up for it.**_

 _ **I know it's been several months since my last update. And during those months I've thought about where I want to take this story. So far on its current course, I see myself writing into a corner, and that's not something I want to happen. So that is why this story is going to be rewritten. I know that there's not much to the story at the moment right now anyway, so hopefully nothing will be missed.**_

 _ **The prologue and first chapter will be up soon. I'm not going to give a specific date or give myself a deadline because we all know how good I am at keeping up with that...**_

 _ **Anyway story is being rewritten, and will be up and running soon. Hope y'all read it. If not then I'll understand. Till next time.**_


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